Wonders Of The Past
by The Musician Of The Night
Summary: Three stars of a high school production of Phantom Of The Opera are taken into the story. They face the challenge of getting home, as well as convincing people that they are not insane. But what do Raoul, Christine, and the Phantom think about t
1. Chapter One

A/N: I obviously do not own POTO, and if i did, I would be rich. Also, if anyone out there reading this is named Kite, Alex, or Kat - I'd like to appologize for using these names. I also do not own the quote right below this...

This Chapter's quote is:

_Phantom faces at the windows,_

_Phantom shadows on the floor..._

Le Miserables, the musical

* * *

Wonders Of The Past

Chapter One

" - _way you choose, he has to win_." Alex sang. "Okay, stop." Mr. Copen said. Alex, Kite, and Kat looked out from the stage into the auditorium. "That was nice, but Alex, remember, you need dominate the first part, up till "choose", and then Kite, you dominate the second part with "you cannot win". Right now you are even in the first part, and Kite, you _are_ dominating in the second part. Alex, you need to sing just a bit louder." He glanced at his watch. "Okay, well, it seems we're done for today. That's what you should practice, Alex." he turned to help people clean up. Alex sighed. Kite seemed lost in thought. "Er, Kite?" Alex said, pulling pointedly on the Punjab lasso around his neck. "Huh? Oh, sorry Alex, I was just thinking." Kite said. Kat came over. "'bout what?" She asked suspiciously. "Oh, nothing," Kite said, "do you really want to know?" "I do." Alex said. "Well, I was just thinking, if the Phantom kills with this rope, it must be pretty easy, and I thought, well, you do stick your head in it, so your life is technically in my hands for the last part of the play."

Alex and Kat blinked. "Uh, right...How about getting my head out of it now?" Alex suggested. Kat smiled and went over to him, she fiddled with the rope, and then took it off. "Jeeze, I don't know if I'll ever put my head in it again, now that I know what kind of things he thinks about." Alex said, pretending to look at Kite with mistrust. Kite smiled. "I'm only trying to get into character." He said. "Though I must admit, this mask is rather annoying." He took it off, and looked at it. "Porcelain. The worst stuff on the planet. This thing is _freezing_ when you put it on, and then after about fifteen minutes, it's hot as hell. It starts to slide right off my face. And I can't throw it around or anything, 'cause it would break. Throwing it would at least make me feel better." Kat raised her eyebrows. "Do you want me to start about _my_ costume?" She asked. Kite hastened to say that he already knew all the problems with her costume.

Alex grinned. "Am I the only one who is actually comfortable?" He asked. Kat scowled at him. "Fop." she accused. Alex shrugged. "I like it. What can I say? The shirt's soft, the pants fit, the shoes don't give me blisters, I think it's perfect." Kite gave him a shove. "What about the sword?" Alex frowned. "Okay, I suppose that's the one bad thing." They walked toward the stairs off the stage. Mr. Copen was waiting for them. "Well done, all of you. The props are all working fine, and except for the sword-cape mishap, everything was very nice." Alex muttered an apology.

The sword-cape mishap that Mr. Copen was talking about had happened that morning. It had been the first day that Alex and Kite were fencing in their costumes. Kite had dodged, just as he was supposed to. His cape, however, had been slower. Alex's lunge had been a bit enthusiastic, and he went too far. He pinned the cape to a Styrofoam gravestone, and when Kite had gone into the next move, he had choked when his cape held him back. His stroke went wild, and when Alex tried to block, he ended up ripping the headstone off of the scenery base and hitting Kite with it. No one was hurt, but Alex was very embarrassed.

"I am sorry, Mr. Copen." He said. Mr. Copen smiled. "Don't worry about it, the scenery is already being fixed, and this is the reason we try these things before the actual performance." Alex winced at the thought of his mistake being made in front of an audience. An audience consisting of people other than the cast. "so, all that remains is for the cape to be mended. Kat, if you could...?" Kat reached out and took the cloak. "I'd be happy to." she said. "Well, thank goodness there's someone on the cast who knows how to sew." Kite joked. They all went and gathered up their props. Alex looked distastefully at the sword. "Remind me why Mr. Copen put a swordfight in the musical?" He asked Kite. It was Kat who answered. "He admires the movie, and he was once a professional fencer. So, he decided that he wanted to teach you, and put in the swordfight. Though I'm glad he changed it a bit. I didn't like the fact that the phantom lost in the movie. And I actually get to do something in his version, instead of just standing around." Kite took his sword and attached it to his belt. "I love it. We get real swords, and sheaths, and everything!" he exclaimed. Alex also buckled on his sword so that he could carry other things. He grabbed his script, and as many other things as he could carry.

"Those aren't yours." Kat pointed out. "Yeah, I know. But they go in the room next to my dressing room. And this-" Alex motioned with his chin to a binder which lay on top of the pile. "is Gary's. I'm going to visit him in the hospital this evening. You wanna come? I think he'd be glad to see you two." Kat shook her head. "Sorry, I've gotta baby-sit my neighbor's kids. My parents think that since I'm in high school, I need to earn my own money. It sucks. How is Gary? Any better?" Alex nodded. "A bit. It turns out that he did break his ankle. In that biking accident." Kite groaned in sympathy. "I know what that's like, I've broken my wrist once. Horrible. I think I might be able to go. What've they done for his part, anyway?" Kat spoke up again. "They've gotten his understudy. But since mark was Firmin, they've had to get his understudy, who was Andre, and then his understudy was Lefevre. So a lot of people have moved around. It's all working though." Kite and Alex stared at her, wondering how she knew so much.

They walked past a window and looked out into the rain. "Darn it. I knew it was going to rain." Kat said. "I rode my bike today, any chance one of you gentlemen could give a lady a ride home?" Kite smiled. "Sorry, I took the bus today." he said. "You know I can't drive." Alex said. "Just a few more months, though. Can't wait." He added brightly. Kite looked over at him. "It's not all it's cracked up to be." He said. "So, what? You can drive, even if you never do." Alex persisted. A flash of lightning interrupted him. Kat stopped, and looked out the window. There was a low rumble of thunder. "Quite close." Alex commented. They turned down yet another hallway. "Another thing you can tell me, Kat, seeing how you know everything that goes on in the drama club, how did we get stuck with the dressing rooms that are the furthest from the stage?" Kat shrugged. "Random draw, I guess." Kite grinned. "See, she doesn't really know everything." Suddenly there was another crack of thunder, and then the lights went out.

Kite stopped abruptly, and Alex ran into him. "Ow!" He exclaimed as the things he had been carrying fell on his feet. "Just wait a minute." Kat said. "There might be another flash of lightning, then we can see exactly where we are." They waited for a moment, Alex feeling around in the dark, trying to pick up all the props he had been carrying. "Stupid weather." He muttered. Another bit of thunder and lightning came. "Okay," Kat said. "We're level with the painted props room. That means that three more doors down on the left we come to a turn. Then the fifth door on the left side of the hall after the turn is Alex's and the sixth is mine, and then the one after the water fountain is Kite's. Come on, we can pick up this stuff later, once the power's back on. For now, I have a lamp in my dressing room that is battery powered. Come on." Alex stood and moved to the left. "How do you know exactly how many doors down it is?" He asked rhetorically. He found a wall and felt along it until he ran into someone. "It's me." Kite said, after Alex had apologized. "Oh, Kat? Where are you?" Kat replied that she was ahead of them. "Hurry up. I'll count the doors." She said, and they heard her footsteps going away.

Suddenly the announcement system was turned on. "Members of the art club and the drama club, I apologize for the electricity outage. The third wing of the school was not affected. Please find a teacher and come to the cafeteria. Thank you." It buzzed for a second and then turned off. Kat frowned, though no one could see it in the dark. "Oh? And what if we can't find a teacher?" Alex and Kite heard the frown in her voice. "Come on. We'll just go and get the lamp and then go to the cafeteria." She said, and started off. When they reached the door Kat said was the door to her dressing room, Alex and Kite waited while Kat dug around in her backpack for the key. She put the backpack on the ground and felt around in it. "Come on...I know it's in here somewhere." She muttered.

"Aha! Got it." Kat felt around for the door knob, and then for the key hole. She put the key in, and opened the door just as another flash of lightning lit up the room. The light spilled out into the hall. Alex shut his eyes, and Kite brought up his hand to shield his own eyes. When the light disappeared a second later, flames were greedily consuming a tree that had been struck by the lightning and was a mere ten feet away from the window of Kat's dressing room. The three who had been outside the dressing room were nowhere to be seen.

* * *

A/N: Well, as far as I'm concerned, this is just a necessary chapter. I mean, they have to leave from somewhere to arrive somewhere (did that make any sense?). 

**Random Bits Of Useless Trivia:**

Why Kite? It's almost Erik backwards...I was going to have it be Kire, but I thought that sounded weird, hence, Kite

Why Kat? Well...I have a friend who is knicknamed Director Kat-Kat. (long story) and she is a POTO hater. So this is a joke, and I'm also getting back at her for writing, in my notebook, _in pen_, "DO NOT GO AND SEE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA!" yes, exactly like that. Because where I live, POTO is still in theaters...hehe, you can watch it at home, or on the big screen.

Why Alex? I just like the name.

The next chapter is a bit more interesting...please review!


	2. Chapter Two

A/N: Yay! People liked it!

**elvinscarf: **hehe, glad you liked it!

**Healing Hands:** Thanks for the advice. I'm not exactly sure what you meant, but I've tried to space this chapter out a bit more. It makes a lot of white space, but hopefully it will be more legible. (Makes it look like i actually wrote more thanI did, too.)

I do not own Phantom Of The Opera, much to my regret. I also do not own the quote down below (these are just random quotes that I find that I think sound vaguely Phantomish).

"_It must be a torture chamber!" Sancho screamed._

_The Adventures Of Don Quixote de la Mancha _

* * *

Wonders Of The Past

Chapter Two

Alex opened his eyes once the bright light had disappeared. To his surprise there was still light. He looked around and saw that Kite and Kat were both looking around too. "What?" Alex asked.

"I have no idea." Kat replied. Alex looked down at the ground. It was no longer office carpet, but stone, as were the walls. But there was light coming from somewhere. Kite peered down the long corridor.

"Let's go that way," he said, "I think the light's coming from over there." Alex grabbed his sleeve.

"Wait a minute. Do you really think we should go towards the light? I mean, maybe we've died and...you know, people always say, keep away from the light at the end of the tunnel. And this is exactly how I always imagined the tunnel. Or maybe I've passed out, and this is all some weird dream." he continued. Kat pinched herself.

"Nope, not a dream," she said, rubbing her arm. "but if we are dead...well, I always imagined that I'd be...more of a spirit. Less solid, at any rate. Come on." Kat began to walk in the direction Kite had indicated. Alex looked down the passage untrustingly. He followed, however.

The passageway was rather dusty, and Alex felt as though he was going to sneeze. He was relieved when Kite stopped. "I don't believe it." Kite muttered. Alex peered around him, and felt his mouth fall open in surprise.

"Neither do I." he agreed. It was as though they were looking through a window into a room. Kat approached the glass and looked through.

"No one there," she said turning back to them. "Um, I might sound crazy, but do you know what this reminds me of?" Alex nodded.

"I know exactly." Kite nodded as well. "But it can't be. I mean, unless this _is_ just some dream that I'm having." Alex nodded towards the glass.

"Can we open it? See what it looks like on the other side?" Kat pulled on the glass, and it slid sideways. She stepped out, and looked around the room.

"It is..." she said. Kite and Alex stepped out as well. They looked around in awe. Alex started to slide the mirror shut behind himself.

"Wait, don't close it all the way!" Kite said. Alex nodded and left it ajar.

"Yeah, we don't know if it would open again."

Kite went to the door and peered out. "I don't see anyone," he said. He pulled the door shut and turned the lock. "Okay," he said, turning around, "if this is real, and not a dream. If we've really been transported to... this place, then we need to figure out what to do." Kat nodded agreement.

"Right. First, let's take an inventory. There are the three of us. And we have?" Kite pulled everything out of his pockets.

"Let's see...I have my costume, including my lasso and my mask. I also have my script and a CD with the music on it. That's it." Kat turned to Alex. "How about you?" Alex looked at what he was carrying.

"I also have my script, a bunch of paper, and...ah, this must be Gary's, the plan for the stage lighting. Oh, and I have two ballpoint pens and a highlighter. And my sword. Kite has his sword, too." Kite glanced down.

"Oh, right. I got used to it, and I guess I forgot I was wearing it. Sorry." Alex snorted.

"How could you possibly forget? It's always bumping against my legs, or poking me, or something." Kat now looked to see what she had.

"Well, I've got the key to my dressing room, my costume, your cloak, the key to my bike lock, my script, and a pencil." she laid all of the things out in front of her.

"No food, no water, no matches. Well, we are prepared aren't we?" she said sarcastically.

"Well, why would we need any of those things for after school drama club?" Alex asked.

"So, what do we do now?" Kite asked, picking up his cloak and examining the hole. "Say, this isn't too bad. I thought it would be some big gaping thing." Alex nodded.

"Well, it could have been, but it didn't rip. So, yeah, what are we going to do? We don't even know if we're BC or AD." Kat stared at him.

"What?" she asked. "BC or AD? What do you mean? The phantom of the opera takes place in 188-something, I think. But it's definitely AD." Alex shrugged.

"I mean, BC is **_B_**efore **_C_**hristine, and AD is **_A_**fter **_D_**on Juan. It's just how I think of things." Kite and Kat stared at him. "Hey, what're you looking at me like that for? It's just something I made up." Kat nodded.

"Yeah...ah, so, we need to find out whether we're...AD or BC. Jeeze, that just sounds so weird!" she said.

"We could go back down to the lair, if that's where the tunnel we landed in goes..." Kite suggested. Alex quickly tried to persuade him otherwise.

"No, I really don't think that's a good idea...I mean, if he saw himself, Raoul, and Christine, what do you think he'd do? I mean, Kat and I might be anyone, but you are definitely a phantom. We should at least try to find other clothes. We don't even know what version we're in, if we're in the story at all! Leroux, Webber, movie, Kay, need I go on? I mean, is it only a half deformity? This dressing room looks sort of like the movie, but is that any indication?" Kat sighed.

"I know...what if the phantom looks like Gerard Butler...oooooh, that would be so...so..." she trailed off with an expression of ecstasy on her face. Kite looked over with distaste.

"Um, Kat, hello? This is real life, he'd probably kill you if you tried to hug him or something."

Kat sighed again and nodded. "I suppose you're right. But I could still try...I'm only kidding!" She hastened to assure them. "So, shall we go out and brave the opera house? It must not be totally movie, if the house is still standing, and isn't burnt. Maybe it's Webber, then. I don't know the book as well as the musical. But it could be that it's just this part that isn't burnt..." Alex pointed something out.

"Listen! You can hear something. Maybe it's singing!" He pressed his ear to the door. "Uh, oh! I think someone's coming!" he hissed suddenly.

Kat ran for the mirror, but it wouldn't open. "I thought I told you not to close it all the way!" Kite moaned.

"I didn't!" Alex protested. "I left it open a bit! In case something like this happened!" Kat groaned as someone tried the door. It was still locked.

"Should we...?" Kite whispered, motioning to the lock.

"No," Kat whispered back, "maybe they'll go away to get a key or something, and we could slip out!" The door knob rattled as the person tried to open it.

"Christine?" Came a voice. "Christine, are you in there?" Kite glanced at Alex. "Raoul?" He mouthed. Alex shrugged.

"Christine! Are you there? Christine, answer me! If you're in there, don't go near the mirror! Christi-" his shouting stopped suddenly. Kat raised her eyebrows.

"I'll hazard a guess that we're AD," she said. Now another voice came through the door. "I'm right here, Raoul, what's wrong?" the new person said. Alex whispered,

"I guess you were right." to Kite.

"That must be Christine." Kat muttered.

The conversation outside the door continued. "Thank goodness! I thought you were in there." Raoul said.

"Why, would that be bad?" Christine asked.

"Well, the last time the door was locked, you disappeared. I was afraid that it might happen again." Raoul said.

"The door? Locked? But I didn't lock it," there was another rattle of the doorknob.

"Do you have a key, Christine?" Raoul asked.

"No, but I'm sure the management does. Let's go see them." there were some footsteps, then silence.

"Quick!" Kat hissed. Alex hurried to the door, and pressed his ear against it. He couldn't hear anyone outside. He joined Kat and Kite in gathering up all their stuff. He tucked his under his arm and quietly unlocked the door.

"Hurry up, we don't know how long we have!" Kat said. Alex pushed open the door and hurried out into the hall, followed by the other two. Then they all stopped dead. Christine and Raoul were staring at them from a few feet away from the door. From what Alex had seen, they had been kissing, when they were interrupted by the three coming out of the room. Alex tried to say something. "Erk..." was all that came out. Raoul was staring, as was Christine. Kat and Kite were also staring. Alex was trying to come up with a coherent sentence. "We...we're terribly sorry. We...uh...got locked in. By mistake! Uh..." he trailed off. "Kite..." he whispered. "You're the oldest. So, what do we do?" Kite swallowed.

"Run." he said hoarsely. Then he took off down the hall, in the opposite direction from Raoul and Christine.

Kat and Alex stared after him for a second, before following his example. "Maybe they'll just think it was a dream." Kat panted as she and Alex tried to catch up to Kite.

"He's in track..." Alex gasped. He was already lagging behind Kat. "You must be in track. Why is everyone faster then me?" he wondered. Then he heard footsteps behind him. He kept his eyes on Kat. "Don't look back. Don't look back," he repeated to himself.

His eyes had their own idea, unfortunately. He looked back to see Raoul running after him. And gaining. He turned a corner, and saw Kat already halfway down it. "Kat," he pleaded, "wait for me!" But Kat didn't hear him. She probably thought he was still right behind her. Alex stopped, and panted. He could hear the footsteps of Raoul catching up. Alex looked desperately around and spotted a door that was partially open. He dived through it, and slammed it shut. Then he realized that it didn't have a lock. Then someone pushed on the door from the other side. Alex struggled to keep the door shut. "Why me?" he cried to himself. He glanced around the room he had entered. It wasn't a room at all, but a short corridor, with still more doors. "How big is this place?" he wondered.

Raoul was still pushing on the door. Alex was digging in his heels trying to keep it closed. He looked around. It would only be a matter of time before his strength failed. Alex let go of the door and jumped back from it when it banged open. "I surrender!" he cried.

* * *

A/N: yeah…I was thinking about the word "viceroy". And I was also thinking about the meaning. So, vice is like second (vice principal, vice president) and roy is king in French…so viceroy is like vice king…weird, you can tell I don't normally think. Heh 


	3. Chapter Three

A/N: oops, this took longer to get up than I had hoped. Hope it was worth the wait.

I don't own anything, blah, blah, blah...

_"The music ignites the night with passion and fire..."_

Rent, the musical (is that how ignites is spelled?)

* * *

Raoul looked at him in surprise. Then Christine came up behind him. She was also out of breath. 

"I...I surrender." Alex repeated. "Look, I'll, um, take off my sword! See!" He drew his sword with only a small bit of difficulty and dropped it on the ground. Raoul had tensed when he had drawn it, but now he asked,

"Who are you?" Alex was relieved that Raoul spoke English. Then he remembered that he had heard him speak in English to Christine.

"Idiot," he muttered to himself.

"Pardon?" Raoul asked sharply.

"Er, nothing. Not you. I mean, yeah, I'm Alex. It's, er, nice to meet you." He held out his hand, and Raoul shook it, though he let go quickly. "And you are...Raoul?" Raoul nodded. "I, uh, heard you through the door." Alex said hastily. Maybe it would be better not to say that he knew everything about Raoul, except how Raoul managed to sing over the phantom in the line, "_Either way you choose, he has to win_".

Christine moved and took Raoul's hand. "What are we going to do?" she whispered. Alex heard her anyway.

"Don't worry, Christine. Everything will be fine." he murmured back. "Monsieur," he addressed Alex, "I wish to know what you were doing in my fiancee's dressing room." Alex blinked. Finacee? They weren't married yet?

"It was...an accident..." he said. Alex thought that he really should let Kite do the talking. Or Kat. They would know what to say.

Kat bolted down the hall. "He can't be too far ahead!" She said to Alex. Then she rounded a corner, and ran right into someone. She looked up and saw Kite. "Oh, thank goodness it's you!" she said, then she turned and looked for Alex. She saw no one. "Alex?" She called. "Where did he go? I was sure he was right behind me!" Kat exclaimed. Then she heard a door slamming. "That might be him!" She said. Kite peered down the hall.

"Yeah, hurry, I forgot he's a really slow runner." Kite and Kat ran back down the way they had come. They just rounded a corner when they dived back around it.

"Did she see us?" Kat asked franticly.

"I don't think so." Kite said, he glanced around the corner. "She's gone into another room." he reported.

Kite and Kat had just decided to risk rushing past the door that Christine had gone into when people came out of it. They dashed back to the other side of the corner yet again and peered out. Kat saw that it was Christine and Raoul and, her heart sank, Alex. Alex was walking in front of Raoul in a very dejected sort of way. Kite noticed that Raoul was carrying Alex's sword.

"Oh no," he groaned, "he didn't try to fight, did he?" Kite looked down at the mask he was carrying. "Give me that! Quick!" He said as he tugged the cloak out of Kat's grasp. He fit the mask on, and then put on the cloak.

"Oh, no! You can't do that!" Kat hissed at him once she realized what he intended to do. Kite glared at her.

"We can't just abandon Alex!" He said. Kat tried to reason.

"Come on! We don't know that Raoul has any bad intentions! What would you do if you were at home and strange people suddenly burst out of your bathroom or your closet or something? You'd want to find out where they came from! That's all he probably wants to do! No, Kite, don't do it!" But Kite didn't listen. He grasped the handle of his own sword and stepped out into the hall.

"Vicomte!" He cried. Christine, Raoul, and Alex all turned. Christine gave a gasp and collapsed. Raoul just managed to catch her. Kite strode forward, drawing his sword. Alex stared at him. What was he doing? He wasn't seriously going to challenge Raoul, was he?

"Wh - what are you doing?" He cried. Kite jerked his head back towards the corner where Kat was peering out.

"Go on." he said. Raoul laid Christine gently on the ground and then stood up, grasping Alex's sword firmly.

"Who are you?" He asked.

"I'm the phantom of the opera!" Kite said, standing up straighter.

"No, you're not," Raoul said, "the phantom is taller than me. And you're the same height as I am." Alex glanced between them. It was true, Raoul was just the same height as Kite.

"Go on, Alex." Kite said. Raoul lifted his sword defensively.

"I don't know who you are, or why you are dressed in such apparel, but if you intend to fight, I will gladly defeat you." Kite advanced and was preparing to attack when Kat ran out from her hiding place.

"Kite! This is insane!" She said. Kite lowered his sword and took a step back.

"You sure, Kat? I'm sure I could beat him. I've gotten really good." Kat frowned at him.

"Come on, all you know is what's in the play," she said. Alex hurried over to her.

"Um, you might not want to mention the play...in front of Raoul, I mean." He whispered. Kat looked over at him and nodded. Kite sheathed his sword. Alex gaped at him. "How did you do that?" He asked in awe.

"What?" Kite asked, looking around for whatever he had done.

"Sheathe your sword like that? I mean, it was all...flowing and neat. You didn't even have to try and find the sheath, it just...went in!" Kite looked down.

"Oh, I don't know, it just...worked." Alex frowned.

"Not fair." he announced. "So, what do we do now?" He asked in a quieter voice. Raoul had gone over to attend to Christine.

"I suggest that you come with Christine and I and explain things." He said. Kite took off his mask.

"There isn't anything to explain," he said, "we're just...uh..." He looked at Kat for help.

"Don't look at me like that! I don't know what to say!" Kat said quickly.

Raoul stood up with Christine in his arms. "I do suggest that you come with me." He said. His tone indicated that it was not entirely a request. Kat shrugged, and followed him. Alex looked at Kite, and then they both followed Kat. When they arrived back at Christine's dressing room, Raoul led the way in. He laid Christine in a chair and then he shut the door, surreptitiously turning the lock.

"Well now, pray explain." He commanded as he searched among the draws for smelling salts. Kat looked at Alex. Alex looked at Kite. Kite looked at Kat.

"Well..." Kite began.

"You see..." Kat also began.

"We're not from...here." Kite said. "We're from a very different place, and when we got here, we didn't know where we were. So we decided to lock the door until we figured out where we were. And... Then you came and tried to open the door, and we decided to move to a different room since this one needed to be used, and then you saw us leave." He finished.

Raoul seemed to have found the salts, for he went over and waved something under Christine's nose. She gagged and opened her eyes. "Oh, Raoul, it's you," she said. Raoul nodded and then nodded over at Kat and Kite and Alex. "I was just asking these three to tell us what they are doing here. Don't worry, my dear, you haven't missed anything. So," he turned back to Kite, "where did you come from?" Kite looked uncomfortable.

"From the future!" Alex said. Kat glared at him.

"Hush!" she said. Kite sighed.

"It's true, I'm afraid. We come from what is the future to you. This is the past, but not entirely. In our...homeland, this is fiction. Your lives, and adventures, have been written into a book, and a play, and we are three of the people who perform the play. Well, we haven't actually performed it yet, we're still rehearsing. But I play the Phantom, Kat here is Christine, and Alex is...you." Alex and Kat nodded. Raoul was now looking at them as though he thought that they were not quite sane.

"Look, we can prove it. Here's the script." Kat said, handing her script to Raoul. Alex handed his to Christine.

Raoul glanced through it. "This is...amazing." He said to himself. "This is almost exactly what happened." Kat glanced over at him.

"Almost? What's different?" Raoul flipped another page and looked at it. "Well, there wasn't all this singing, but this song from the Don Juan performance is pretty much the same. This swordfight didn't happen either." Alex glared triumphantly at Kite.

"Aha! See! There was never any dumb swordfight!" Kite shrugged.

"And I wouldn't know if this part with "_The Music Of The Night_" is true. Christine?" Christine nodded. She was looking pale.

"It's true. We were going down and I was singing for him, and then when we got there he told me all about his music...his kingdom. Then he showed me a statue of myself and I fainted. And when I woke up I did take off his mask and he got angry with me." A small sob escaped her. Raoul put a comforting arm around her.

"It's all right. It's all in the past. Christine, shhh, I'm here." Christine took out her handkerchief and tried to compose herself.

"But I suppose the true issue is, how are we getting home?" Alex asked. Kite and Kat looked at him. "Do we even want to? I mean, how cool is this? No one ever gets to go inside a story." Kat glared at him.

"Of course we want to get back! There are our families, and friends, and who would play the three main characters if we weren't there?" Kite nodded.

"We do have to go home, but while we're here, I don't see any reason we shouldn't enjoy ourselves!" Kat nodded happily.

"Yeah! An opera house...wow. But isn't it rather quiet? I thought that opera houses were noisy and full, but that's just the impression I got from the movie." Raoul nodded.

"Yes, they are normally much more crowded than this. After the chandelier fell, the managers gave everyone a week off so that they could have construction teams working without everyone getting in the way." Alex frowned.

"So then this is after the chandelier? When did it fall?" It was Christine who answered.

"During Don Juan. It's different than in your play." Kat glanced at Kite.

"We're doing Webber, but that is similar to the movie...Raoul, did you fall into somewhere with a lot of mirrors at the Masquerade?" She asked. Raoul nodded.

"Though I wouldn't say I _fell_. I went after the phantom." Alex glanced at Kat.

"Still more like the movie." She commented.

"What is this _movie_?" Asked Raoul curiously. Kite looked at Alex.

"You know how these things work," he said. Alex nodded.

"Well, a movie is a series of pictures which are shown so fast that it appears to be continues motion. I think that there are twenty-four pictures a second, though I'm just pulling that number out of the air. Seems like too much. So when you take these pictures, with a special device, then you can play them back and...others can see what happened. Won't be invented for a while, though."

Raoul was clearly struggling to understand. Alex shook his head. "Never mind. It's just that, since the story has been made into many plays, most of them portray characters differently. The movie is pretty much Webber's version, but it does have some changes. For the better. And some that," he glanced at Kat, "some people don't approve of." Kat shook her head.

"Raoul said himself that the swordfight never took place."

Kite nodded and then turned to Raoul. "It's interesting. In the movie, you fight the phantom in a cemetery, but unlike in our play, you win." Raoul raised his eyebrows.

"And?" He asked.

"And... Christine intervenes on the half of the phantom, and you spare his life." Kite said with a glance at Christine to see how she would take this. Christine nodded and Raoul, after a second, nodded as well.

"Well, I'm glad that we didn't have to face that situation." He said. Everyone sat in silence for a moment. Then Kat spoke up.

"You know, you look a bit like you do in the movie, but Christine, you don't. Makes me wonder what the Phantom looks like." Christine shuddered.

"Horrible," she whispered.

"Why would you want to know?" Raoul asked. Kat grinned.

"'Cause in the movie, the phantom's a really hot guy." Alex rolled his eyes.

"And say hello to miss Gerard fan. Ooh, ooh." He said with sarcasm. Kat twiddled her thumbs, whistling innocently. Raoul glanced between them.

"Hot?" he asked. Kite waved his hand around.

"You know, handsome, appealing - to girls, that is! It's difficult to explain." Raoul nodded distractedly.

* * *

A/N: more random trivia... 

names, and where they come from and what they mean...

Erik, Norse, means "ever ruler" hmmm, not to bad. feast day is May 18 (wait, that's soon!)

Gerard, Teutonic, means "strong spear" cool! feast day is october 16

Raoul, "french form of Ralph"

Ralph, "from Randolph"

Randolph, "shield wolf"? (feast day, may 27)

Carlotta, "feminine varient of Charles"

Charles, Teutonic, "man"..."man"? so, Carlotta's name means "man"! wild...

Oh, i can't help myself...

Orlando, Italian for Roland

Roland, Teutonic, "wide famed" well, sure got that right, orlando bloom is, like, reeeeeally wide famed nowadays!

XD review!


	4. Chapter Four

A/N: Well, my updates seem to come in spurts... So, thank you all for all the wonderful reviews.They are like little patches of blue sky in the clouds of my life... actually, my life is pretty much all good, so I don't really have the right to say that. But they do make me feel nice and... appreciated. Yeah, that's the word! So look, I'll respond to them! (If I miss any, I'm really sorry, they might not have shown up on my computer.)

**Mominator124**- Well, you do see the Phantom in this chapter, hope he's the one you want...

**Mel**- Yay! Thank you!

**Kchan88**- I know, I certantly had fun writing it. Hey, you're one of the two people who have reviewed more than once... :)

**elvinscarf**- hehe - :)

**Jinxd n cursed**- I hope it continues to be interesting.

**stainedblackrose**- Nah, there are lots of stories with people from the present meeting the characters, but there are so many different senarios that you can put them in that they all end up different. So if you wrote one, I'm sure it wouldn't be like mine at all, even if it started the same way. I agree, Gerard is handsome.

**Dancer of the Opera**- Well, this is soon, but you might have to wait for a bit for the next chapter.

**Christy Day**- Woot! Someone mentioned the quotes! I love them too, that's why I'm sharing them with everyone.

Chapter's quote is... (Oh yeah, I own no Eriks, Christines, of Raouls.)

_In my life, she has burst like the music of angels..._

Another Les Miserables

* * *

Raoul stood up from the chair he had been seated in. 

"It all seems so impossible," he said, looking from one to the other to the other. "This concept that where you come from, I am fiction. Nothing but a character in a book and...movie." He hesitated before saying the latter, still unfamiliar with 21st century words. "I think that you should stay here in the opera house. It is due to open again tomorrow, and I am sure that I could arrange something so that you three could join the chorus."

Kat smiled. "Thank you so much! We really appreciate it! Until we figure out how to get home." Alex and Kite nodded agreement and thanks.

"Well, I think that we should go do that, then. M. Kite, I suggest that you leave your cloak, sword, and mask here, however." Kite nodded and took off the cloak. He folded it neatly, placing it with the mask and sword. Raoul put Alex's sword on the pile as well before opening the door and motioning Christine through it.

Christine left, followed by Kat and then Kite and Alex. Raoul shut the door behind himself. Then he took the lead, and led them all down the hall in the direction of the managers' office. Kat and the others followed, looking around in glee at their surroundings.

After they had exited the dressing room, another figure had slipped in.

_

* * *

_

_Don't do it. Don't go. Why torture yourself?_

The phantom shook his head. "I'm not going," he told himself. "I'm just going to deliver this letter. That's all."

_You can try to justify your actions with an excuse, but it won't fool anyone. All you'll see is her and the boy. Then you'll wish that it could be you, and you'll wish that things could have turned out differently, when you know that they never could have._

The phantom shook his head again. "I'm not going, really I'm not." He repeated to himself. He walked purposely towards the managers' office. He waited until he was sure there was no one inside before he delivered his letter.

He wanted to wait and see the managers' reactions, but he soon found his feet treading the familiar path to Christine's dressing room. "No, I'm not going to look." He assured himself. His feet would not change their course, however. "All right, just one look. Only to make sure she's all right," he muttered.

_Ah, see! You know you shouldn't. You know you can't have her. She didn't chose you and there's nothing you can do about it._

He frowned and approached the mirror. There she was, in all her beauty. The phantom sighed and felt tears come to his eyes.

_You did it again, why must you always do this?_

He pressed his hand to the glass, wishing that she would see him, call him her angle again.

_She has guests._

He looked and saw that she did indeed. There was the vicomte, and three others. The phantom narrowed his eyes. They were not from his opera house, he was certain. Who were they then? They were all facing away from the mirror, so he couldn't see their faces. One of them was wearing a black cloak, however, so possibly he had just come from outside? The phantom wondered. He listened intently, and heard the conversation drifting through.

"What is a movie?" The vicomte was asking the strangers. The phantom listened with interest as one of them tried to explain. What he said sounded amazing. It certainly seemed as though it would work. He closed his eyes and in his mind formed the device that would play this movie.

It would need the pictures...and they would need to be on glass or something that was sheer. They would only be able to change a bit between each of them...he opened his eyes and listened to more of the conversation.

It was certainly interesting. When the female visitor asked what he looked like, the phantom raised his eyebrows. Didn't everyone in the city know what he looked like? Hadn't the newspaper described him as a "horrible deformed monster with one side of his face all twisted"? Christine said something which he barely caught. "Horrible," she whispered. He sank down to the floor, the tears which he had been holding in falling down his face.

_You knew this would happen. You never should have come here. You should have listened to me._

"Even she says I'm horrible," he whispered. He leaned back against the mirror and raised his hand to his mask. "She hates me. And even now, I still love her. Why..." He wept silently, his mind re-playing her voice. "Horrible...horrible...horrible..." Through his misery he heard the door shut. He looked back through the mirror and saw that the room was empty.

He opened the mirror and slipped out, leaving it open. This room...so many happy memories. He tried to remember Christine's voice calling out to her angel but it sounded mocking in his mind. He glanced at the cloak that the stranger had left. With a jolt, he saw what was lying on top of it. He slowly reached down and picked up the white mask.

* * *

When the group neared the managers' office, they heard raised voices coming out from it. "This is insane! I thought he would go away, or die, or something! Certainly not continue with this _my opera house_ joke!" One of them was shouting. 

"Just calm down! We know where he lives now, we can get him out," the other said. Raoul knocked on the door.

"Come in," came an irritable reply. Raoul and the others walked in. The three from the future looked around and saw two men, one of whom was holding a letter. He thrust it at Raoul.

"Here, just look at this!" He cried, waving the piece of paper. Raoul took it and read it with interest.

"It's absurd! He is mad, Firmin, we were daft not to think so." the other - who must be Firmin, Kat reasoned - nodded in agreement. Raoul read the letter out loud.

_Messieurs,_

_I am extremely grateful that you are repairing my opera house. I will allow my monthly salary to be slightly late, as I am sure you are on a tight budget at the moment, and have many things to see to. The new tenor you have employed seems satisfactory, although he has a rather annoying habit of prying where he shouldn't, if you take my meaning. Please warn him that it is dangerous in some parts of the opera house, and that accidents have been known to happen. I am sure he will understand. Please continue to keep box five at my disposal._

_Respectfully yours,_

_O.G._

Andre slammed his hand down on the desk. "You see?" He cried. "Outrage! Why can't he just leave us in peace? After the whole Daee scandal - pardon me, mademoiselle, I meant no offence - I had hoped that we might be able to run a normal opera house. But it seems that there is no chance of that!"

He breathed deeply to calm himself. Firmin took over, "And even now he gives thinly veiled threats, "_dangerous in parts of the opera house_" and "_accidents have been known to happen_" why ever can't he just go away? Or at least not bother us?" Christine was looking pale, and Raoul quickly changed the subject. "Is there room in the chorus for a few more?" He asked.

"A few more?" Fimin repeated, "Half of them have quit! We need all the people we can get!" Raoul smiled.

"Then may I present mademoiselle Kat, Messieurs Kite and Alex. They are interested in joining the chorus." Andre glanced at them.

"We may not be able to pay much," he informed them, "as our delightful friend the Opera Ghost has pointed out, we are on a rather tight budget. If not for _le Vicomte de Chagny_ here, the opera might be closed." Andre gestured at Raoul, and Raoul nodded gravely. "I would never let that happen," he assured them.

* * *

Woah, I can't think of anything to put down here except, yes, I do know that the Phantom has a name. It is Erik, a cool name, if I do say so.I actually heard the soundtrack, read the book...and then the other book... and then some more books (it's amazing how many published fanfictions there are!) before I saw the movie. And I've only seen it once. Yeah, I'm not a "phan" exactly... but don't let that stop you from reviewing! 


	5. Chapter Five

A/N: I have a new respect for every single FanFiction author out there. Every single _writer_ for that matter! All those who can fight off the dreaded... dundundun... writer's block! (tmotn hits evil virus with her keyboard.) I appologize that this took so long. Hopefully you all haven't abandoned me... (were you with me in the first place?) So, I have an outline written for the rest of the story, so hopefully the virus won't strike again (tmotn pokes lump of virusness on her floor.) Oh, and this is long! Hope it makes up for the delay. (reviews at the bottom...)

* * *

Kat was almost skipping as she left the managers office. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" She squealed in delight. Kite and Alex also clamored their thanks. Christine offered to show Kat the dormitories. 

"Raoul, perhaps you could show the other one to Kite and Alex?" She asked, when they reached a turn in the hall. Raoul nodded and motioned for Kite and Alex to follow him.

"They normally don't allow males in the girls' dormitory," Christine explained to Kat as they continued on down the hall by themselves. "Sometimes Buquet would sneak in, but your friends will have to stay out. Buquet didn't care much about his reputation, I'm afraid," she made a face, "or about the other girls'."

When she opened the door to the room, Kat looked in with delight. "It's so nice!" She exclaimed. "I love it!" Christine smiled.

"See if you still think that when everyone is inside with you." She said. "I don't sleep in here anymore, Raoul is letting me stay in his house. Also, you're welcome to use my dressing room, the one you arrived in, if you want, instead of the chorus'." Kat nodded. She and the others hadn't mentioned that they had not arrived in the dressing room, but in the passage behind the mirror.

"Could I see where Kite and Alex are staying?" She asked. Christine nodded and led her down more hallways. Kat tried to remember the way, but she soon lost her sense of direction.

"Don't worry," Christine said, noticing that Kat was looking around with confusion, "you'll learn your way around, it's not really as big as it seems." Kat looked skeptical. "Here we are," Christine announced. She knocked on a door, which was opened by Raoul. Kat peered in past him, and saw a room that looked similar to the one she would be staying in.

Kite and Alex were sitting on beds and talking. Raoul let Christine and Kat into the room. "We were just saying," he said, "that you don't have any other clothes than what you're wearing, and perhaps we should get you some more." Kat protested.

"Oh, but you've done so much already, getting us positions here," she said. Raoul shook his head.

"You heard the managers, they're so desperate that they would have hired anyone, regardless of whether or not they could sing." Kat nodded slowly.

"Well, if you do buy us clothes, we should at least pay you back! We'll get a little money from being in the chorus," Raoul smiled.

"Oh, I couldn't accept, mademoiselle, consider it a gift!" Kat shook her head.

"The money would be no good back in our time." Kite and Alex nodded.

"Well, we should go shopping!" Christine exclaimed. Raoul winced at the thought. "Don't worry, Raoul, you don't have to come with Kat and I," Christine hastened to assure him. "You can to the tailor's with Kite and Alex." She hurried out, and everyone followed her.

* * *

Kite, Alex, and Raoul were back at the opera house after about half an hour. They waited for another hour... And then a bit more... Finally Kat came into the room. She looked happy, if a bit exhausted, and she put an alarmingly large pile of things on the bed Kite had taken. He looked at it, then at his own pile of neatly stacked boxes. What was in all those bags? He wondered.

"Raoul, could you help me carry these?" Christine called from the hall. Raoul went out, and then poked his head back in.

"We'll be back shortly," he said, before following after Christine. Kat flopped down on another bed. "Geeze, it's insane!" She said loudly.

"That you bought that much? I'll say!" Alex agreed.

Kat glowered at him. "I mean, that clothes could be so uncomfortable! I don't think I'll ever complain about my costume again!" Kite looked skeptical.

"Right, I'll remember you said that," he informed her. She glared.

"Seriously, why does the phantom even need a torture chamber? He could just stuff intruders into corsets, and they suffocate without the help of a rope!" Alex looked confused. Kat sat up and rummaged in a bag. "Here, look," she said, holding up something that Alex assumed was a corset. "Just don't tell Christine or Raoul I showed you, it's the same as showing someone your underwear in this time."

Kite took it from Kat. "You're supposed to wear this?" He asked in disbelief. Kat nodded.

"I'm just thankful I'm thin, that means I can sometimes _not_ wear it!" She took it and stuffed it back into the bag. "And seriously, the amount of fabric you have to have on to be considered decent... Like I said, it's insane!" Kite and Alex shrugged.

Kat stood, "come on, let's explore!" She said. Alex glanced at the door.

"Are you sure? What'll Raoul and Christine think if they come back and we're not here?" Kat shrugged.

"Here, I'll write them a note," she said, pulling out some paper from another bag. "I did get some things that are useful. And look," she held up a fountain pen, "isn't this cool?"

She carefully wrote a note to Christine, saying that the three of them had gone exploring, and that if they weren't back in an hour or so, that she should come looking for them.

Kite read it and shrugged. "I suppose that's all right..."

Kat folded the note and placed it on the floor where it would be immediately visible to anyone who came into the room.

"Come on," she said, walking out the door. Alex and Kite followed, both thinking that this was really not a good idea.

* * *

The phantom slowly picked up the mask which lay on top of the pile of Alex's, Kat's, and Kite's things. He stared at it and turned it slowly over in his hands. Was it his? He looked again. No, it was not his. There were words written on the inside of it...

"Property of the drama club?" He said out loud in confusion. Then this was a prop from the production he had heard about through the mirror.

_A production of your life story, your attempt to seduce Christine, and her rejection._

He shook his head. "I didn't try to seduce her..." he said, "and they couldn't have meant that my life thus far has been written into a story." He glanced at what had lain underneath the mask, and his heart nearly skipped a beat. "_The Phantom Of The Opera, by Gaston Leroux, music by Andrew Lloyd-Webber, lyrics by Charles Hart_"

Written below that in blue was, "Kite, the phantom" he looked at the other scripts and saw each of them had blue writing on them. "Kathryn, Christine" and "Alexander, Raoul". He took up the script that had Kite's name on it, along with the mask, and a strange disk he found there as well. Then the phantom turned and went back through the mirror.

* * *

Kite and Alex followed Kat as she poked around the opera house. They had to admit, it was fun. They were careful to keep away from the places that were under construction, but there still seemed to be an endless amount of doors and hallways. When they came to a staircase Kat stopped before it.

"Well, gentlemen, up or down?" she asked.

"We've just been on _one_ floor?" Alex asked in disbelief. "You could fit our whole school in here twenty times!"

"Yeah, it is huge," Kite agreed.

"Up or down?" Kat asked again. "Say, I wonder if we could find some other way into the phantom's lair?"

"Up!"

"Up, definitely!"

Kat frowned, "Oh, come on, you two have no sense of adventure."

"I'd prefer to think that I actually have common sense, unlike _someone_ I know..." Alex said, looking pointedly at Kat. She shrugged.

"Ah, well, up it is." After several more flights of stairs, Alex was beginning to regret climbing after Kat in the first place.

"Are we - almost - up yet?" He panted.

"Yes," Kat called back down. Alex gave a sigh of relief when he reached another floor. Kat pointed gleefully behind him.

"Look!" She cried in delight. "More stairs!" Alex groaned. "Come on, you said you wanted to go up," Kat said, hurrying over to the stairs.

"Not this high!" Alex protested. He followed Kat and Kite, however. After they had climbed the stairs they came to a door. Opening it, Kat gasped.

"Oh, wow!" She said. "Come on Alex, _this_ is worth the climb!" Alex stepped out after her onto the roof. He did have to admit, the view was wonderful. "This is one of those times I'm glad I don't suffer from vertigo!" Kat cried, running out across the roof to get a better view. "Apollo!" Kite and Alex heard her say, "come on, let's climb it!"

They hurried over to the base of the enormous statue to see Kat already hanging from a fold in Apollo's metal tunic. She clambered swiftly up, and sat on his outstretched arm, gazing around. Kite and Alex followed. Kite swung himself up easily, leaving Alex on the ground staring up at them.

"Aren't you a bit, well, unstable?" He asked nervously as a gust of wind blew across the roof.

"Not at all!" Kat cried back down to him, "Come on up, you can see everything!" Alex pulled himself up onto the base of the statue and started climbing up. Once he reached the top - the climb had been easier than he had thought it would be - he perched nervously on a shoulder and gazed around.

"Woah, you can see everything!" he agreed, though he clutched Apollo's head when another gust of wind hit them.

* * *

"I still expect to wake up at any moment," Kat said. Kite and Alex nodded in agreement. "But I suppose that there are good things about being here, besides the mere fact that we _are_ here."

"What're those?" Kite asked her. Kat smiled.

"We get singing practice, and we get _paid_ for it, and we get to learn some history, especially if we get the newspaper from Raoul, and best of all, there's no math class!" Alex cheered at the last one. "Of course, there are bad things, too," Kat added.

"No, no, don't spoil the moment!" Alex cried. Kat grinned.

"Yeah, but still, I'll be horribly out of practice when I go back to my debate club."

"Debate club?" Kite asked, "I don't remember their being a debate club." Kat shook her head.

"It's not through school," she said, "it's just a community thing. You can sign up at the library if you want, it's a fun club."

"So, what do you do in it?" Alex asked her.

"Well, recently we've been working a lot on defense. Like, you get something that you have to defend, and then you need to defend it in front of people, and you get points on how well you do, and how good your defense is."

"Give us an example," Kite said.

Kat shrugged. "Well, say I was asked to defend, uh, Christine, I might say that she's just someone who wants to sing," she shrugged. "Yeah, that's what we do, and we work on other kinds of debate and things." Kite nodded.

"Erm, interesting." Alex said. "So, what about Christine? Could you defend her more?"

"Did anyone ask if she even loved either Raoul or Erik? I mean, getting dragged all over creation, when all she wanted to do was sing and mourn her father. Not be stalked by evil men who watch her get changed from behind her mirror."

"Point taken," Kite said. Alex nodded.

"It does sound like a neat club. Not as cool as the drama club though..." Kat nodded her agreement.

"Yep, I don't think anything could beat the drama club." She said. "Look, the sunset's so beautiful." Kite and Alex looked out over the city at the sunset. Sunset?

"How long have been up here?" Alex gasped. Kite shrugged. Kat hurriedly started to climb down the statue.

"Darn, they're probably looking for us!" She said as she hurried across the roof. Alex slid down most of the statue and fell the rest of the way.

"Ow..." he moaned, as he staggered off after Kat. Kite jumped off the base of the statue.

"You okay?" he asked. Alex nodded.

"But just thinking of all those stairs makes me ill," he said. Luckily they met someone as soon as they had climbed down a few flights of stairs.

"Is one of you Monsieur Kite?" The man asked them. Kite nodded.

"I am," he said. The man grinned.

"The Vicomte is looking for you, I'll take you to him." He said before leading them through the opera house until they found Raoul and Christine. They all sighed with relief, and the man went away humming with the money Raoul had given him.

"Sorry!" Kat said, "We lost track of time!" Raoul frowned, but Christine laughed.

"I know, it has so many places to explore doesn't it?" She asked. Kat, Kite, and Alex all nodded.

"Well, let's go eat something," Raoul said. Everyone nodded. Food sounded wonderful.

As they walked towards the exit Raoul pulled Christine ahead out of earshot of Kat and the others. "Are you sure it's safe for them to wander around?" He asked Christine quietly.

She looked at him, confused. "Of course, the construction isn't dangerous," she said. Raoul shook his head.

"I mean, you don't think that there's any... _other_ danger?" Christine looked away from him.

"No, I don't think there is," she said quietly.

* * *

Christine doesn't thing so, but is there? Hmmm, I wonder...

**Dancer Of The Opera -** Well, published fanfiction is just what i call it. there are not that many, too. (sorry if i got your hopes up!) but if you think about it, even the musical is a fanfiction, just in musical form. i mean, it's leroux's story... so, there's Phantom by Susan Kay, and Phantom Of Manhattan byFrederick Forsyth, and there's Angel Of The Opera by Sam Siciliano, and there's... hm, Maskerade by Terry Pratchett, which is an _insanely_ funny parody. (i'll try to think of more.)

**Jinxd n cursed** - thank you!

**smgirl **- sorry that this isn't exactly soon...

**Christy Day** - Yeah, I've seen the musical once... it was good.

**Kchan88** - ah, i haven't been on the computer a lot lately, buti did manage to read a bit of your story! i liked it! and there appears to be a sequel? good!

**Lunasariel **- ah, well, the story kat and kite and alex are in is pretty much the movie, but there was no swordfight in the cemitary. i don't know how it worked out, but it did. yeah, there's another soundtrack floating around out there, and it has the chandelier falling in the middle, right before the intermission, right after the phantom says, "you will curse the day you did not do, all that the phantom asked of you!" and that is the production kat and others are doing. sorry this is short (and with no capital letters, i have to hurry, but i'll try to answer any other questions you have.)


	6. Chapter Six

A/N: Eep! Must get chapter up... Must hurry... Sorry, no time to respond to reviews, but I loved getting them!

Oh, I forgot to put a quote in the last chapter... I'll do two here. (tmotn hunts around for some good quote) Well, this is the best I can do.

_I am the road_

_Leading to no return._

_Secret of life,_

_Finally his to learn._

Once on This Island, the musical.

Does this correspond to those unspoken secrets he'd learn past the point of no return?

_You talk of battles to be won,_

_And here he comes like Don Juan,_

_He's better than an opera!_

Le Mis (again!) hehe, Don Juan and opera in the same sentence can't be a mistake!

* * *

After she had come back to the opera house, and was in her bed, Kat decided that the dinner had gone rather well. It certainly could have been a lot worse, she thought. Despite being suffocated by a corset, and not knowing proper etiquette, she and the others had managed to survive. Raoul had asked that they be seated in a corner, and their mistakes had been overlooked by the restaurant at large. Kat shifted and pulled the blanket farther around her. Tomorrow would be a big day, with everyone returning to the opera house.

Kat hoped that nothing bad would happen. But maybe she'd get to meet other characters! Kat grinned and wondered what Meg and Madame Giry would look like. She wondered if Carlotta would show up.

The next morning Kat woke and jumped out of bed immediately, which was quite rare for her. She changed and opened the door, glancing out into the hall.

"Kat, Kat!" She heard someone calling. She looked down the hall and saw Kite and Alex peering around the corner. She grinned and beckoned them over. Kite shook his head and beckoned to her. With a sigh, Kat walked down to them.

"What, to lazy to walk down the hall?" She asked. Alex shook his head.

"We met Mrs. Giry," he said, as if this should explain everything.

Kat grinned. "Really? What was she like?" She asked eagerly. Alex shrugged.

"Not to interesting," he said, "she found us waiting outside your door and said that we shouldn't be here, it wasn't decent." Kat chuckled.

"Well, you know, proper etiquette," she said, waving her hand around.

"I would have thought friends could wait on each other." Alex said in annoyance.

"Not when it's a girl and a boy," Kat reminded him.

"So, Mrs. Giry said that if we were determined to wait for you, we weren't allowed to come past that corner." He said. They went down to find something to eat, still arguing about rules, and what should be considered proper.

Kite walked a bit behind them, listening with a slight smile. They were always the loud ones. He didn't talk much, except to people he felt very comfortable around, or on stage. Then he could slip effortlessly into another personality, instead of his quiet self.

Ooooooooooooooooooo

After the three found something to eat (some sort of oatmeal in a dining room) they went looking for Christine. After asking numerous people directions (the opera house now had _many_ more people in it) they came to the dressing room. Kat knocked, but there was no answer. She finally opened the door, peering in.

"No one," she announced, and she walked in. Alex went over to their stuff. After shifting some of it, he glanced around and then at the floor.

"Hey, Kite, did you leave your script and mask here?" he asked. Kite walked over.

"Yes, I did. Why?" Alex showed him the two scripts that he could find.

"I can't seem to find yours, or the mask. Do you think that someone might have stolen them?" Kat's head jerked around at the word _stolen_.

"Stolen?" She repeated. "I hope not, that is the only mask that the drama club has," Kite picked up the cloak and shook it out.

"I don't see it anywhere either," he admitted, "or my script."

Just then Christine came through the doorway. "Oh!" She gasped, and dropped what she was carrying. Kat bent down and picked it up.

"Are you all right?" she asked. Christine nodded.

"I'm sorry, it's just that no one ever comes in here, and when I saw someone, I was startled." Alex cocked his head.

"No one ever comes in?" He asked. Christine nodded.

"Yes, sometimes meg, or Raoul, but no one else." Alex frowned.

"Some of our things are gone, and we think that we left them here," he said.

"Perhaps Raoul took them?" Kat suggested. Christine shook her head.

"I don't believe so," she said, "he and I didn't come back here after dinner. I do hope they turn up, I'd hate for you to loose anything." The others nodded. "Well," said Christine brightly, "today is your first day in the chorus, I hope you enjoy it!" Kat grinned broadly.

"I'm sure I will!" She said happily. "So, where do we go?" Christine motioned to the door and the four walked out into the hallway.

The three spent a very enjoyable morning. Since singing was their hobby, it was not difficult to do it for a long time, though Kat thought that doing it for a year might be pushing her fondness in it. After a short break Kat was shepherded off by Christine to do ballet.

"But I don't want to dance, I want to sing," she protested, but Christine insisted.

"Everyone in the chorus is also in ballet," she explained, "even your friends." Kat chuckled at the thought of Kite and Alex dancing.

To Kat's amazement and relief, the dancing wasn't that difficult. She had taken a year of ballet when she had been smaller, and she sort of remembered what to do. She was still exhausted, however, when Madame Giry said it was time for dinner. Kat positively _drooled_ at the thought of food, since she had missed lunch.

Chatting happily with the friends she had made, they all made their way to the dining hall. She spotted Kite and Alex, but her new friends tugged her over to their table and she went and sat with them. She was intent on her food and jumped when one of her friends grabbed her shoulder.

"Kat!" she hissed, giggling, "Those boys keep staring at you!" Kat looked up and turned in the direction her friend pointed. She saw Alex and Kite staring. "They seem _infatuated_!" There was more giggling. Kat blushed.

"We're just friends," she protested, but they just smiled and laughed. To her relief the conversation changed to _their_ love interests. Kat looked across the room and saw Christine sitting with Meg. They were chatting happily together as well.

* * *

I'm in Latin, and I learned a word recently. It's _operae_. Now, to make a word ending in "a" plural, you add an "e", so _opera_e is plural, and if it were to be singular, it would be _opera_.

What does it mean? Er, "hired thugs", according to my book. My teacher says it's like "gang". Cool, right?

Unfortunatly, it doesn't appear to have a singular, so "opera" isn't a word in Latin. Drats.


	7. Chapter Seven

A/N: Wow, it's summer. Can't believe it! No school… WOOT! That means that I get bored more easily. And when I get bored, I write. And when I write, I write fanfiction, among other things. I already have the next chapter and most of the one after that written. I want to hear your thoughts on this one before I put it up, though. So please, review and then I can put up the next chapter! I shall now respond to the reviews from last chapter…

**Mominator-** Wow! Your dictionary must be a lot bigger than mine. Mine just has on definition, and no word origin. I'm glad you liked it, too!

**Kchan88-** I know, it can be funny to see times clash!

**Arwen1604- **I'm glad that you like my time travel story, and I'm glad that I'm not the only one who calls them published fanficion. (and I have seen all of the Star Wars ones, I haven't read them tho'.)

**Lunasariel-** I don't really think it will be a Kite vs. Alex situation. At least in this story. (ponders sequel) Sorry if that's what you were hoping for.

I don't own the wonderful story or the wonderful characters (drools over certain character) of Phantom of the Opera.

Quote:

_Putting on a mask of black silk and drawing a roquelaire closely about my person…_

The Cask of Amontillado, by Edgar Allen Poe (I looked up _roquelaire_ and my dictionary said it was a cloak thing that goes down to the knees. Ah, well.)

Oh! Also, I re-tell a Greek myth in this chapter. I don't own that, and I tell the version I learned. I'm also sorry if I offend anyone (cultural stuff?)

* * *

After they had all finished eating, Kat and her new friends started to walk back to the dormitory. Kat saw Kite and Alex loitering about the door, Alex pretending to tie his shoe, though Kat could see he was just fiddling with the laces. Down the hall a bit Kat managed to slip away from the other girls, saying that she wanted a word with Christine. She hurried back to Kite and Alex. 

"I think that girls giggle even more in this time than in the present, if that's possible," she said.

"What about?" Alex asked. Kat stared at him.

"Well, boys, etc." She said.

"Ah," Alex mumbled, "but can you believe that we have to do _ballet_? I mean, I thought we were going to _sing_ not dance!" Kat laughed.

"You know, I said almost the same thing! But I don't think it's too bad. Madame Giry's a good teacher, better than my old one, at any rate." Alex made a face.

"We've got this old guy who's half insane teaching us," he said, "and what do you mean, _better than your old one_?" Kat shrugged.

"I used to take ballet in the fifth grade, but I didn't like it because I was too fat."

"Too fat?" Alex repeated in disbelief. "Even _I _know that half the girls at school would give almost anything for your figure. And this is _me_! Mr. Drama-Geek, who knows a grand total of _nil_ about any of the gossip."

"Ah, Mr. Drama-Geek," Kite said, "I'll have to remember that." Alex glared at him.

"It's true," Kat insisted, "that I used to be fat. And short. Then in eighth grade I had this huge growth spurt, and I thinned out."

"Which middle school did you go to?" Alex asked, "Because I only met you in the high school's drama club, but maybe you went to my school?" Kat shook her head.

"No, my family moved here after I finished eighth grade, so you wouldn't have known me. But I took ballet for a year. The first half was all right, but then in the second half we actually had to _dance_, and that was when it started to become bad. I didn't complain though, because my parents had already paid for a year. At the end of the year I got to be in a performance.

"It was a tiny part, just big enough so that my parents could get photos, but that was when I learned what I really wanted to do. I wanted to be the person singing, not the person dancing. So when my parents asked me if I wanted to continue ballet, I said that I wanted to try something else. When I asked about singing, they signed me up for a choir, and I've been singing ever since."

"Neat," Alex said, "but on to a more pressing issue - how are we ever going to find time to talk? They seem to keep the girls completely away from the boys, and vice versa. We'll never be able to just meet somewhere and talk."

"You seem to have found a way, nonetheless," someone said. The three jumped and turned to see Christine and Meg standing in the doorway.

"Don't worry," Meg said, "it's not usually this organized. You can probably find somewhere to talk once things settle down and go back to the usual chaos." Christine laughed.

"Yes, most of the rehearsing actually takes place a few days before the performance." She said.

* * *

Over the next few days Kat began to see how the organized way of things began to dissolve. When she rushed (late) into the room where the chorus practiced only to find that it was meeting in the after noon instead of the morning, she found that she suddenly had rather a lot of free time to use up before she had to be anywhere. 

Kat immediately went in search of Kite and Alex, figuring that they would also not have anything to do. She found them with Raoul, which was no surprise. What did surprise her was what they were doing.

Fencing? She thought that Alex hated fencing.

"No, Alex, hold it a bit higher!" Raoul instructed. Kat watched with amusement as Alex adjusted his hands, and then struck out with his sword at Raoul. Raoul blocked, and then returned the strike. Kat cheered and they noticed her.

"Wow, do you think I could learn too?" She asked eagerly.

"Pardon?" Raoul looked astounded. "Mademoiselle, I'm afraid that I don't know what you mean." Kat realized what he was thinking.

"Never mind, I'm not really dressed for it anyway," she said, tugging at her dress. Raoul looked relieved that he wouldn't have to explain that ladies _never_ fenced. Kat sat and watched the swordplay, a little miffed that Alex and Kite could have fun learning, but she couldn't. Finally she stood and wandered out of the room, wondering if any of her chorus friends would be nearby.

She didn't find her friends, but she did find a large group of the young children who were in ballet. Several of them begged her to stay and play with them since they were bored. Kat smiled and obliged. When she heard a church bell tolling noon, she managed to get away from the children and go to see where the chorus was having practice. Alex and Kite rushed in slightly late, but nobody noticed, they were all to busy trying to watch the carpenters putting up the new scenery.

"Everyone, attend!" Someone cried, but no one paid any attention, and the next attempts to gain order were drowned in the applause that followed the lowering of the new backdrop. Kat agreed that it was very beautiful and looked lifelike. Nothing much got done that day, except some weak scales, but Kat had a lot of fun.

The next day, much to Kite and Alex's relief, there was no ballet again. They asked Kat if she minded if they spent the time with Raoul, learning more fencing. Kat shrugged, and said she didn't mind.

"Are you sure?" Alex persisted. "We don't want you to feel left out," Kat smiled but shook her head.

"No, I can see that you really want to. Don't worry, you go have fun, and I'll see you at dinner."

"See, maybe, but speak to? Not a chance." Alex said. Kat shooed them off and then went to see if she could find the children she had played with the other day.

* * *

As Kat walked down the hall she heard footsteps behind her and turned. She grinned when she saw almost all of the young girls who were in ballet converging on her. She had never been overly fond of children, babysitting was just a job. But she always seemed to be a _kid-magnet_, using the term her mother had thought up. 

"I guess some things never change," She said to her self as she braced for impact. The group of kids glomped onto her.

"Kat, Kat!" They cried, "Kat, play with us! Tell us a story!" Kat smiled.

"A story, hm?" She asked. They all nodded.

"Yes, yes, please, Kat! Wonderful ones, like the ones you told yesterday!" She picked up one of the youngest.

"Weeeeeeell," she said, "I guess there might be time for just one story." The children shouted with joy. "Where shall I tell it?" Kat asked. They led her to the room that she had met them in. She settled down, and they all sat around her.

Kat thought rather desperately. She had already told many of the Disney stories the other day, and she was running a bit short. Then a story from her English class popped into her head. She smiled. It was slightly fitting, after all...

"Well," she said, "I'll tell you a Greek story, a myth that is how ancient Greeks explained the summer and winter. Would you like to hear that?" All of her audience nodded eagerly. "So," Kat began, "There was once a goddess of grain. Her name was Demeter. Demeter had a daughter who was very beautiful, and her name was Persephone...

* * *

One day Persephone was out gathering flowers. She was singing and dancing in the field. Suddenly the dark lord of the underworld, Hades, saw her. He immediately fell in love with her, and decided to make her his bride, his queen of the underworld. Persephone was singing and dancing, when a giant crack opened up in the earth! Out of it came Hades, in his black chariot drawn by four black horses. He grabbed Persephone and was about to take her down when a herdsman arrived. He had heard Persephone's screams, but when Hades saw him, he rode him down and killed him. Hades didn't want anyone to know where he had taken Persephone. 

When Demeter came to look for her daughter, she was dismayed by her absence. She found the scattered flowers that Persephone had dropped, and she found the dead herdsman. She began to search the meadow, calling for her daughter, but Persephone was nowhere to be found for she was in the underworld where Hades had taken her. He kept her there, and she walked in his gardens, but she missed the real sun and her mother. Demeter was full of grief, and while she was so, nothing would grow. The earth became cold, and all of the food ran out. Zeus, the king of all the gods and goddesses, saw that everyone was starving, so he looked for Persephone as well. When he discovered that Hades had her, he commanded him to give her back to her mother so that things would grow again.

Hades was deeply in love with Persephone, and he agreed that she could return but only if she had not eaten anything in the underworld. He brought Persephone to his chariot, which he had parked next to a pomegranate tree. He went to get his horses, and Persephone looked at the fruit. She was overjoyed that she would soon be back under the sun with her mother. To celebrate, she took a pomegranate and ate some of it. When Persephone and Hades arrived back on earth, she and her mother rejoiced. But then Zeus asked if she had eaten anything in the underworld. Persephone confessed that she had eaten some of a pomegranate.

When she heard this, Demeter - who knew the condition Hades had set down - started to weep. She swore that if she and her daughter would be parted, she would die. Zeus decided that since Persephone had eaten six of the seeds of the pomegranate, she would stay in the underworld with Hades for six months every year. The other six she would spend with her mother. And that's why the world grows cold, and nothing grows during the winter. Because Persephone is down in the underworld, and Demeter is weeping, wishing for her back. Then when she returns, everything bursts into life and it is spring.

* * *

Kat smiled. The ballet girls all nodded. "It's like Christine, and the Phantom." One of them whispered. Kat grinned, she had wondered if any of them would see the parallels. 

"Only a bit," she admitted.

* * *

Behind the wall the phantom turned away from where he had been listening. Hades and Persephone, he mused. That girl certainly had a strange sense of humor, telling such tales in his opera house. He returned to his home in the cellar and proceeded to ponder the script he had borrowed from Kite. After reading it several times and humming a few bars of one of the songs, he started to inspect the strange disk he had also taken. 

It was rather reflective on one side and it showed the rainbow when held to the light correctly. He couldn't figure out what it was for. With a sigh of annoyance he tossed it aside with the script, before sitting down at his organ and starting to play.

* * *

Yes, that thing he stole is a CD. Did you guess? And the myth plays a part in the next chapter, so please try to remember it! Review! 


	8. Chapter Eight

A/N: Mega news! I won an art contest for the cover of a magazine. Or is it a catalog? I can never remember the difference. Oh, so I won a $100 gift certificate! Yay! And this chapter is sure up in a hurry... I think I just want to finish the story. I already have it all typed up... It's only two more chapters after this one. Sorry if you all were hoping for it to be longer :(

Regarding this weird new hit thing FanFiction got... Wonders of the Past already has ninety-two. Some of those are probably me, lookingto make sure it posted properly, but still... Wow...

No quote, sorry. I've misplaced my notebook with all of them in it. Grrrr! But maybe in the next chapter...?

And finally, I don't own story, characters, etc. of Phantom of the Opera. (Ah, and this might be confusing in the begining, but pleasejust try to follow along withme.)

* * *

I looked around the meadow. It was beautiful, the grass bent slightly in the wind, and flowers of every color off-set the glowing green of the grass. Suddenly the most beautiful sound in the world came to my ears. It was so beautiful that it made me immediately decide that it was not of this world at all. I strode through the long grass until I came to the top of the hill. I glanced down the gentle slope of the other side, and there she was. My angel, singing in the most beautiful voice. 

She was dancing as well, seeming to be one with the wind, her movements to flowing and graceful to describe. Every so often she would bend and pick a flower to add to her bouquet. I longed to call out to her, but I was afraid of disturbing the beauty of the picture she created. Instead I merely watched, entranced.

Suddenly the picture was broken, though not by me. A great dark chasm opened in the green grass. My angel turned toward it in surprise and fear. There burst out of it a chariot, drawn by black horses and driven by a man who seemed cloaked in shadow. I ran down the hill, calling, telling my angel to run, but it was too late. The chariot raced toward her, and she turned with a cry and fled, her flowers scattering in the wind. Then he was upon her.

She was scooped into the chariot as the horses reared and turned, ready to race back to the crack in the earth. I caught a movement out of the corner of my eye. A man, running along the crest of the hill towards me. The driver of the chariot saw him too. The horses charged, and he desperately tried to outrun them, but they were to fast. He turned with a scream and was struck down by the driver. It was in that instant when the driver gave a laugh of triumph, and my angel gave a cry of despair, that I saw that the man who had been killed was Buquet... And the driver... The driver was me!

* * *

_"NO!"_

The phantom awoke with a strangled cry. He looked around, breathing wildly. His home, his sanctuary. He let his hands rest on the keys of the organ on which he had fallen asleep. A dream... It had all been a dream.

"That's not what happened," he growled, desperate to re-assure himself. "I wasn't the evil, I wasn't!"

_You killed..._

"For _her_, I killed for her." The phantom said, putting his head in his hands. "Buquet was-"

_A threat?_ His inner voice finished for him.

"It's all that girl's fault!" He snarled, bringing his fist down on the top of the organ. "If she hadn't been telling such ridiculous stories!" He stood and stalked over to his desk. "I want her out. _Now_!" He said as he grabbed paper for a letter. "I want her gone by mid-day!" Immediately after he had finished his letter, the phantom went to deliver it.

When he had, and was back in his lair, he sat down at his organ. He began to play, a sad tune, but visions of himself riding down Christine, Buquet's terrified face, Christine's shriek... They filled his mind, his eyes. He slammed his hands down on the organ's keys, creating a painfully jarring mixture of notes that echoed around like Christine's cry, before fading out of existence.

He closed his eyes and tried to shut out the memories of the dream, but they still came, mocking him. Go away, he thought, just go away...

_You can no more get rid of them than you can me._

The phantom groaned and then pushed himself to his feet. He walked over to his small pantry and opened the door. He pushed some food aside and then grabbed one of the bottles from the back. It was old and covered in dust. He blew the dust off and then grabbed the cork, pulling it out by hand. He raised the bottle and gulped some down. The alcohol was strong, very strong. He felt it taking effect immediately.

"No!" he cried, and hurled the bottle across the room, where it smashed against the wall. "I won't do this," he said, struggling to his feet, with the aid of the table. "I won't become some common drunk, letting alcohol solve my problems by drinking until I don't remember them. I'm above that! I-"

He sank back to his knees, the world spinning. He managed to crawl over to his organ, and he tried to use it to pull himself up onto the bench. He grabbed it, and hit several keys. He laughed. It sounded so funny! And to think - the opera ghost, drunk.

"I'm not drunk," he assured himself. "I'm not, really, I," he seemed to be having a hard time making his mouth do what he wanted to. "I love you, Christine," he said, "I love you, and do you know what? I really love you!" He slumped over onto the organ, trying to control himself, but when he heard the notes, he started laughing again. Joy, this joy... He needed to share it. He staggered over to the get that led to the way out.

But how odd, he couldn't find how to open it. He pushed at the lever, but the gate refused to go up. "Oh, well," he said as he tottered back to the pantry, "I have more. I can share it with you here, Christine. Eh? Eh?" He reached out and fumbled with the door of the pantry. After opening it, he grabbed out the other bottle.

After some difficulty, he finally just smashed the neck of the bottle, since he couldn't seem to remember how you were supposed to take the bottom off. As he raised the bottle to his lips, a small part of his still sober self objected. But the phantom ignored it, and drank almost the entire bottle before he passed out.

* * *

The next morning found the opera ghost in a very sorry state. He had managed to drag himself to the edge of the lake, and he knelt there, retching. With a groan, the phantom tried to remember what had happened. He remembered drinking from one bottle, but he had found two, one smashed, and one mostly empty. But the one that had smashed had been quite full, judging from the large amount of spilled alcohol around it. 

Still, he thought, one bottle was quite enough... He got unsteadily to his feet, but lost his balance and fell into the lake. That succeeded in sobering him up rather quickly. He pulled himself out of the lake and stumbled over to a chair. Sinking into it, he tried to remember more, but only got fragments of feelings, mostly hysterical joy. He shook his head.

This was bad. He hadn't turned to alcohol since... A long while before he had met Christine, at least. What if it happened again? He didn't want to go back to that... Dependency. With a sigh, he started to try and clean up the mess he had made while he had been drunk. He examined his organ carefully, testing each key, checking the surface for any damage, but he found none, save a stain on several of the keys, which he carefully cleaned off. He glanced at his hands, and found that they were cut.

Picking up the bottle which was still relatively in one piece, he examined it and found that the jagged edge from where the neck had been broken off had blood on it also. With a snarl of annoyance, he threw the bottle against the wall, where the other one had smashed. He watched as the small amount of remaining liquid seeped away. He then carefully checked to see if any of his paper had been used. He found that there was one sheet missing.

He remembered that it had been used to write a note, ordering that girl, _Kat_, out of his opera house. That was good, at least he hadn't done any composing while drunk. The phantom vividly remembered once, after he had been drunk, finding a stack of paper that he had written music on. When he had tried to play it, it had been to horrible to describe. It had been excellent music, but the feelings it inspired... He had actually used some of it in Don Juan. A watered down version, of course. Not even he himself had been able to stand it while sober.

* * *

When Andre entered the room, the first thing he saw was the letter, lying on the floor. He immediately went to find Firmin, and then showed it to him. Firmin bravely opened it, and was shocked at what it said. 

_I want that girl, that _Kat_, out of my opera house NOW! She will be out of here by mid-day. _

_O.G._

"He seems to have abandoned false politeness all together!" Andre exploded. Firmin nodded wildly in agreement.

"But what are we going to _do_?" He cried. "She and the others are here by the Vicomte's special request, we can't just kick her out, the Vicomte would be outraged! Who knows what he might do!"

"But we can't just ignore this! Who knows what this blasted opera ghost will do?"

"And this Kat is also a friend of Christine Daae's! We'd risk angering our Prima Donna as well as our _sole_ patron!"

"But Christine Daae isn't Carlotta,"

"Exactly!"

Andre somewhat failed to get the point, but he kept on. "P-perhaps we should talk to the Vicomte about this?" He suggested.

"No!" Firmin hissed. "We can't do that, who knows what will happen? More deaths, probably!"

"But, Firmin, _he_ could be watching us right now, _he_ could even now be going off to cause some great disaster!" The two men looked around, their eyes wide with paranoia.

"We'll... We'll discuss this later, Firmin," Andre said. "I, er, have an errand. Something outside the opera house. I'll be back... Around... Late, probably!" With that he practically ran out the door. Firmin followed, muttering something about an errand as well.

* * *

Yes, yes, get out so that any falling chandeliers don't hit you... Ya see, Andre and Firmin are smarter than they look... 

I have never been drunk. I've never drunk more than a sip or two of wine, beer, and other alchoholic stuff. (at a time, that is) The closest I've gotten was a fever of 105 degrees F, which is supposedly really really high. I went sort of insane, and I started laughing hystericly at things that weren't even funny. I remember trying to controll it, thinking, "All right, stop laughing, there's nothing funny!"But I couldn't. So I put that in.

Yeah, now that I re-read it, I don't think it's that great. Did you?


	9. Chapter Nine

Er, sorry 'bout the lack of new chapters. I was at camp, where I didn't have much access to a computer. So I'm putting up the rest of the story. And, sorry about the genre(?) confusion: I gavethe story action/adventure because i wanted adventure, and action sort of came along for the ride. and i didn't have the story written when i gave it that...

* * *

There was a lot of shouting (and a fair amount of swearing) as people tried to negotiate around each other. Many of them were carrying large pieces of set, which kept bumping into other people. Kat was giddy as she stepped out onto the stage and looked out at all of the seats. What it would be like to be on center stage, with every one of those seats filled, and all of the occupants looking at you... She and the other members of the chorus started to file onto the stands prepared for them. There was more shouting between people when it was discovered that the stands were about three feet too short.

Kat glanced down the line trying to find Kite and Alex, but people were moving around to quickly. "Everyone off!" came the shout. Kat and the rest of the chorus shoved their way off of the stands. She and everyone else milled around the stage as the carpenters brought out some more wood and started arguing about how best to attach the extension.

The phantom watched the scene below him through narrowed eyes. It was well into the evening, but that girl was still in his opera. Added to that, his managers seemed to have disappeared. He glanced around and his eyes found one of the sand-bags that was helping to balance the backdrop. What a shame if the rope securing it should come undone…

Kat managed to squeeze through the crowd to the edge where she saw Kite standing. "Do you see Alex?" she asked, standing on tiptoes and trying to scan the crowd. Kite shook his head.

"No," he said. Suddenly there was a panicked shout. Kat looked around, wondering what had gone amiss. Kite grabbed Kat's arm and pulled her back. She stumbled and then there was a giant crash and a cloud of dust filled the air. Many people were coughing and Kat waved her hand in front of her face. What had happened?

When the dust settled down enough for her to see, she discovered that only a few feet away from where she and Kite had been standing there was a big bag which had fallen and spilled sand across the stage. More people were shouting, and there were several cries of "the ghost!".

"Thank you, Kite!" Kat said. Kite smiled.

"You should have looked up!" He said. Kat nodded. Just then Alex came running over.

"Oh, Kat, Kite, are you all right?" he asked. "It looked like it almost hit you!" Kat nodded.

"I'm fine, thanks. Kite pulled me away." Alex looked relieved.

Oooooooooooooooooo

The ghost stared down at the scene below him. Perhaps now she would take a hint and leave, he thought. He heard several people climbing up the stairs, and he hurried to a safer spot where he couldn't be seen, but he could still observe.

The stage was being cleared of sand while the chorus was hustled backstage. Christine came over to Kat and the others, looking pale. "Are you hurt?" she asked. Kat shook her head. Christine sighed with relief. "It was him," she said, glancing up to into the darkness above the stage. "I know it was. But I can't believe he'd just drop something like that. And almost on you, as well!" Christine wiped at her eyes. "It hurts me, Kat," she said quietly. "That he would do something like that. I know that I have cause to hate him, after all he's done, but..." she turned suddenly away. "I'm sorry," she apologized as she hurried off.

A few minutes later Raoul came running up. "I heard that there was an accident, is everyone all right?" he asked franticly, "Have you seen Christine?"

Kat nodded and said, "I think she went to her dressing room," Raoul thanked her and hurried away. Kat looked around and then started to follow him. "I want to make sure Christine is all right," she said to Kite and Alex, "she was crying." They had almost caught up to Raoul when they saw Christine running towards them.

"Oh, Raoul, thank goodness!" she cried as she ran to him. Raoul caught Christine up in his arms and held her while she cried.

"Christine," he said, "Christine, what happened? Are you hurt?"

"No," Christine sobbed. "But, Raoul, _he_ came to me," Raoul stiffened.

"What happened?" he asked urgently. Christine sniffed and took a deep breath.

"I - he - he must have heard me speak to Kat," she said. Kat and the other two came up beside Raoul. Kat put a comforting hand on Christine's shoulder while Raoul offered her his handkerchief. Christine smiled and accepted it. She dabbed at her eyes and then continued. "I said to Kat that I had good cause to hate him, after all he'd done, but that I," she shook her head. "I didn't know what to say," she said.

"I wanted to be alone, and think, but when I got to my dressing room, he was there waiting for me. He spoke to me from behind the mirror. I wanted to run, I wanted to come find you, Raoul, but he begged me to tell him what my feelings were. I told him that I loved you Raoul, and that I had thought he was my teacher, but when I found that he was deceiving me I was hurt. I told him that he had been so kind to me, after my father had died. Then he became angry. He shouted at me, Raoul, he shouted that I had broken his heart, that I was blind not to see how much he loved me. He said that I was all he had to live for and that-" Christine's voice broke and she started to cry again. Raoul hugged her and tried to calm her. After a few moments Christine had composed herself again. "He said that since I was so cold and uncaring, one more angel's fall would make no difference." she finished. Raoul hugged her close.

"He's all I have left of my father..." Christine said softly. "He comforted me, sang to me, just like my father did." She looked up at Raoul. "He says he loves me, so why does he hate me so much for loving you?"

"It's all right," Raoul told her. He looked over at Kite. "I'm taking Christine to my house," he said. "You three stay together. Don't go anywhere alone, and be cautious." He led Christine down the hall, towards the door. The three watched him go. Suddenly a thought occurred to Kat.

No, she thought, he wouldn't...

"Come on," she cried to Alex and Kite as she took off towards the stairs.

"Wait, Kat, where are you going?" Alex called after her. Kat continued hurrying away.

"H urry, we might already be too late!" She shouted back to them. Kite and Alex hurried after her, wondering if she had finally cracked. They caught up to Kat on the stairs, and she tried to explain what she had thought of.

"Remember what Christine said?" She asked them as she pounded up the stairs, taking them two at a time.

"Sort of," Kite said.

"She said that he had said, _one more angel's fall will make no difference_!" Kat informed them as she ran over to the next staircase and started to climb.

"Why does _that_ matter?" Alex wanted to know.

"He _also_ said that Christine was all he had to live for!" Kat turned and saw Kite's and Alex's blank stares. "Don't you see?" she asked, "He might be trying to commit suicide. _An angel's fall_, and the roof would be a pretty far place to fall from!" she started climbing the stairs again.

"You don't know that," Alex protested.

"But I might be right," Kat insisted. Alex had to admit that it was possible. They had arrived at the door to the roof. Kat heaved it open and gasped when a gust of wind blew into her. She held up her hand to shield her eyes from the rain which was pouring down and being blown about. She ran out onto the roof, staggering slightly from the force of the wind. She looked around wildly.

A flash of lightning lit up the roof and she saw a figure standing on the edge. Kat ran towards it. "Erik!" she cried, but a crash of thunder drowned her out. "Erik, stop!"

He whirled about when he heard her shout his name. How did she know? How _could_ she know? Christine had promised... A tear slid down his face and mingled with the rain.

Kat shouted again. "Erik, please, Christine _does_ love you! She lost her father, and then you came! It was just as her father had said! She loves you, and if you were to die, she'd suffer so much! To loose one father is enough, but two? Please, don't just throw your life away!" Kite and Alex ran up next to Kat.

Erik sneered. "Fool!" he shouted. "Everything was taken from me. My chance at a normal life, my freedom, and now my one and only love! My life is the last thing that is mine, and I will do what I please with it. I will not stay and wait for it, too, to be taken away!" He turned back to the edge when the lightning struck once again.

Kat screamed from the light and the roar of sound that accompanied it. She staggered sideways into Kite as the building shook, and they both fell. Then there was nothing but silence.


	10. Chapter Ten

Kat, Kite, and Alex bowed and smiled. There was so much applause… Then they turned and walked off the stage. Mr. Copen hurried up to them. "Wonderful, wonderful," he said, positively glowing with happiness. "You three seem to portray the characters with so much more emotion now," he said before handing them each a rose (red, with black ribbons Kite noted). Kat and the others thanked him. He then hurried off to spread flowers to the rest of the cast. Alex led the way to the doors out into the lobby of the theater.

"I think it's because we know that they were real," he said.

"What?" Kat asked.

"We know that the characters actually existed, and we know that their struggles and feelings were real," Kat and Kite nodded in agreement.

"But do we?" Kat asked quietly. "Do we really know that it wasn't all just a dream?" Alex looked surprised.

"Of course we do!" He said. Kat shook her head.

"We have no proof, all the things we took came back too," she said.

Kite nodded. "We do have our memories," he said. Kat smiled.

"Yes," she said, laughing, "we do have those!"

"Well, shall we go out and brave the mob?" Alex asked grabbing the handle of the door leading to the lobby.

"Do you realize how appropriate that sounds?" Kite asked him. Alex blinked and then laughed.

"No pun intended," he said.

"Well, let us go," Kat said, motioning him forward. "Gentlemen first," Alex opened the door and almost hit someone with it.

"Oops, sorry!" He apologized as the young man jumped back.

"Oh, I didn't realize this door opened out!" The man said. He glanced at the three of them. "Kite, Kat, and Alex?" He asked. They nodded came forward.

"Yes?" Kite asked.

"I was wondering if I might have a private word?" The man asked, looking around.

"Uh, sure," Alex held the door open so he could come backstage.

"I have something for you three," the man said, pulling an envelope out of his jacket pocket. He held it out. "It's very odd," the man told them as Kite took the envelope. "I didn't open it, however." All three gasped when they saw the front.

_To be delivered to Messieurs Kite and Alex, and Mademoiselle Kat after their performance of "The Phantom of the Opera" in the summer of the year 2005. They reside in the USA._

"It looks very old," the man continued. "But it's sheer luck that I found who it was meant to go to. One of my cousins received it in an inheritance from his late great uncle who lived in France. He remembered that I lived in the US, and he sent this to me. I live a couple hours north of here, but when I did an internet search for productions of Phantom of the Opera, having cast members with your names, your high school popped up. Do you know who it's from?" Kat shook her head.

"No," she said. "We haven't set up a joke, if that's what you're wondering."

"Shall I open it?" Kite asked.

"Yes," Kat and Alex answered. Kite carefully opened the envelope and unfolded the paper inside.

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

_Kite, Alex, and Kat,_

_I have no idea of whether this will ever reach you. It is possible that it never will, or it is possible that you will receive it directly after your performance, as I have requested it to be delivered then. I am writing this several months after the lightning struck the opera house. I'm afraid that Apollo's lyre is now permanently damaged. It melted completely, but it now has a new shape. It looks like a bird taking flight. Or perhaps an angel with wings outspread. I heard what had happened shortly after it took place. A man arrived at my home and told me that he was the stagehand who had led you to me after you had been exploring on the roof. Perhaps you remember him?_

_He informed me that he had seen you three running up the stairs to the roof, and followed you to say that you weren't allowed up there. He heard almost everything that was said, but when he looked out after the lightning struck, there was no one in sight. He surmised that "Erik" had jumped, though he couldn't explain what had happened to the three of you. When he went down to the street below, he could not find a body anywhere. He then came directly to me, to inform me of your absence. I can only hope that you were taken back to your home land and time._

_Several days afterwards, the managers received a letter demanding that the Opera Ghost's salary be paid. I must admit, the looks on their faces were priceless. Christine (the Vicomtess, I might add) was greatly relieved when she heard that he was not dead. I believe that you saved her from a great deal of grief by preventing his death. Thank you._

Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny 

Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Below Raoul's signature was an elaborate seal. Kat and the other two all finished reading at the same time. They looked up at each other in amazement. "I won't pry," the man began, "But I'm afraid I have to admit that I am rather curious as to what it contained…"

"It's… Part of a story." Kite said. "I had no idea…" he trail off. The man shrugged.

"Would you like to keep it?" He asked.

"Oh, yes please!" Kat said. He nodded.

"I greatly enjoyed your performance!" He said. "I'm Raoul, by the way. I'm afraid I get a lot of jokes made about my name." He looked pained. "But," he turned to Alex, "you did an excellent job portraying him!" Alex nodded, trying to keep a straight face. He could sense that Kat and Kite were also struggling with laughter. "I'll take my leave," Raoul said. "Thank you for a wonderful performance, and for adding a bit of color and mystery to my boring life. I'm just sorry the mystery is over!" He turned and walked away.

Kat burst out laughing. "A Raoul!" she said, "And related, if only by marriage, to the real one, too!" Alex and Kite nodded, laughing as well.

"Well, I suppose this proves it," Alex said, tapping the letter.

"It was real," Kat said dreamily, "it was all real…"

**The End**

* * *

I'm putting up anther story now that i've finished this one. It will be called "Parallel Paths" and will be about Erik and Raoul. No, it will _not_ be slash! No, thank you!

Summary: If Christine were kidnapped, could Erik and Raoul work together to rescue her? They try, but with arguments, threats, and violence within the two man rescue party... can Christine _ever_ hope for a rescue!


End file.
